Posted: 2/6/25 at 3:37am
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzVJ4TDv_kU
Somehow I missed that they are doing Old Friends in LA just before Broadway!?!?!
Posted: 2/6/25 at 10:11am
How's Bernadette's singing voice these days? I assume Lea Salonga sounds as great as always?
Posted: 2/6/25 at 10:30am
Lea’s voice is amazing. Bernadette’s voice is what most people would describe as shot but her ‘Send in the Clowns’ sounds remarkably like it did in 2010, she still can belt a bit in losing my mind and she can still sound sexy in ‘Broadway baby’.
Posted: 2/6/25 at 10:34am
Bernadette sounded pretty good at Carnegie Hall a few months ago. She is 76, after all.
She looked spectacular.
Posted: 2/7/25 at 11:05am
Not for this but maybe a preview - is the City Center website down for anyone else right now ? They just released 30 under 30 for the Joshua Harmon.
Posted: 2/7/25 at 1:26pm
quizking101 said: "’m aware. That’s how we ended up with the Aaron/Sutton Sweeney fiasco."
''To be fair, I wouldn't really call that a "fiasco"... Don't get me wrong, I wasn't THRILLED about them joining that revival when the announcement dropped myself, but I do think they both gave respectable enough performances when I did go. Plus, it gave the show a few extra months on Broadway and the sales weren't terrible.''
Aaron and Sutton were terrific in ''Sweeny Todd,'' and a wonderful followup to Josh and Annaleigh. It was exciting to hear Aaron tackle ''Epiphany,'' and the audience ate up Sutton's comic hijinks with a spoon. The show also did better box office than I think anyone expected. This revival deserved better at the Tonys, and I still insist that Josh should've won Best Actor in a Musical that season.
Updated On: 2/7/25 at 01:26 PM
Posted: 2/7/25 at 1:58pm
Bernadette Peters, Lea Salonga and Rehearse for Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends (Exclusive)
https://people.com/bernadette-peters-lea-salonga-rehearsal-stephen-sondheims-old-friends-exclusive-8787616
Posted: 2/7/25 at 4:10pm
Sondheim is Bourne Again: Matthew Bourne on Directing Stephen Sondheim’s “Old Friends” | L.A. Dance Chronicle
https://www.ladancechronicle.com/matthew-bourne-on-directing-stephen-sondheims-old-friends/
Posted: 2/9/25 at 10:02am
I just scanned CTG's tagged photos on Instagram (looking for a song list and who's singing what, but couldn't find it) and noticed that David Harris is not pictured on the cast photo board in the lobby. This led me to check MTC's cast list on their website and he's also missing from that.
Anyone know what happened here? I now remember thinking "how weird" when they announced Selig/Dickey as the final two cast members after Ryan McCarten left, but maybe one of them was replacing McCarten and one was replacing Harris?
Updated On: 2/9/25 at 10:02 AM
Posted: 2/9/25 at 10:27am
Kevin Earley replaced David Harris, and Greg Mills joined the company to play the track Earley was playing. It was announced on Friday.
Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends Announces New Cast Members Ahead of Pre-Broadway Engagement
Posted: 2/9/25 at 11:35am
Smaxie said: "Kevin Earley replaced David Harris, and Greg Mills joined the company to play the track Earley was playing. It was announced on Friday.
Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends Announces New Cast Members Ahead of Pre-Broadway Engagement"
Ah, thank you! That article eluded me when I searched for David and the show.
Posted: 2/9/25 at 4:28pm
I completely agree. Bernadette's Send in the Clowns was beautiful but other songs were pretty rough. Lea was absolutely incredible. I mean I have seen her perform both in concert and in shows but she just blew me away. Specifically as Ms. Lovett and as Rose in Gypsy, I never thought of her as Rose but she was masterful. Was a beautiful night and I think I will probably bring friends back. If you have the chance, I would definitely recommend seeing it.
Posted: 2/10/25 at 1:01am
You can view the song list online:
https://ctg.ihub.app/posts/211323/old-friends-show-info
The show is fantastic, everyone sounds and looks incredible.
Posted: 2/10/25 at 3:07am
* Lea’s ‘coming up roses’ will also more broadly appeal to those that feel Audra’s voice isn’t quite right for the part. It sounds much more like a lupone/merman style, although ultimately I personally prefer the newer territory Audra took the song.
* from one of the interviews above (director) - this is exactly how the show feels to me!
“The key was getting Bernadette to do it. For me, she’s the magic that threads the thing together. She has that direct connection with Sondheim. When she’s on stage, you feel that very much, and those moments are magical. The goal was to surround her with the best talent, and that’s what we’ve done both in London and here.”
* the song list!! They’ve changed ‘I know things now’ to include ‘Bounce’. I have no idea how they combined these songs and the idea of Bernadette singing bounce is so funny/weird haha! Wow!!
Posted: 2/10/25 at 7:59am
Smaxie said: "Kevin Earley replaced David Harris, and Greg Mills joined the company to play the track Earley was playing. It was announced on Friday.
Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends Announces New Cast Members Ahead of Pre-Broadway Engagement"
Greg Mills is fantastic. I'm not much of a Sondheim fan, but I may go to this just to hear him sing again.
Posted: 2/10/25 at 10:54am
So.. what happened with David Harris?
Posted: 2/10/25 at 12:00pm
I was impressed with the range Solanga gets to express - of course we get her gorgeous vocals on things like Loving You and Children Will Listen, but her getting to chew up the scenery in an extended Sweeney Todd sequence in full Lovett drag was a treat. And her Everything's Coming Up Roses lets her get scary - really fun to see her get to do material not normally associated with her voice.
Beth Leavel is on fire too. I thought Bonnie Langford was going to get a standing ovation after I'm Still Here (she didn't, but the crowd went wild anyway). So thrilled to have this caliber of a cast in Los Angeles.
Still annoyed that the "cast recording" from London doesn't represent the show at all. There was a merch table, but not much to choose from.
Posted: 2/10/25 at 1:30pm
does the show have any kind of a throughline connector besides "here is a bunch of Sondheim numbers one after another?" like Sondheim on Sondheim had videos of him talking....anything similar going on here
Posted: 2/10/25 at 1:55pm
This was excellent and highly recommend. The Ahmanson was bursting with energy and passion last night for the show. While there is no throughline really - although certain songs from certain shows are grouped together as another poster stated. The magic lies in the music and these exceptional performers. Get thee to the Ahmanson if you are on the West Coast or get those tickets when it's at MTC now.
Wouldn't be surprised if more than one cast member was nominated for a Tony.
What a love letter to theater - go see this.
Posted: 2/10/25 at 2:01pm
No, it really doesn't. There are certain sections dedicated to specific shows - so all the songs aren't in a totally random order. But there are songs from the same show that aren't with those "blocks" either.
All I can say is that I loved it in London. But I'm someone who can listen to lots of Sondheim songs on shuffle. (And I have.)
Posted: 2/10/25 at 5:27pm
BoringBoredBoard40 said: "does the show have any kind of a throughline connector besides "here is a bunch of Sondheim numbers one after another?"
I saw Old Friends last night and, though it is a thoroughly entertaining & enjoyable evening, I'm still scratching my head at some of the songs selected and, especially, the order in which they're presented. For example:
Early on, we get "Company", "The Little Things You Do Together" and "You Could Drive a Person Crazy". Understandable, so far. But then we veer into "Live Alone and Like It" and then to "Loving You". Huh? And just as I'm trying to wrap my head around that seque, we're suddenly back to Company with "Getting Married Today".
It gets even weirder later, when Bernadette performs "I Know Things Now" before she & (the excellent) Jacob Dickey do "Hello, Little Girl". Isn't that putting the cart before the horse?
And the first act ends with this head-scratching trio: Jeremy Secomb & Lea Salonga's "A Little Priest" (wrapping up a Sweeney Todd section) is followed by Beth Leavel's "Ladies Who Lunch" which is then capped by "Sunday" with the full company.
Act Two provides more of the same, with the "Tonight Quintet", "Broadway Baby", "Everybody Ought to Have a Maid", and "You Gotta Get a Gimmick" preceding a Follies section: "Waiting for the Girls Upstairs", "I'm Still Here", "Could I Leave You" (gender-swapped version), "Buddy's Blues" (the Patinkin solo version) and "The Boy From..." Oops! How did that get in here? Must have been a glitch in the matrix, because we're back to the Follies with the next song: Bernadette's "Losing My Mind". Which is followed by Lea's awe-inspiring "Everything's Coming Up Roses" (the most rapturous applause of the night).
Most of what is on display in Old Friends is terrific. Just don't try to make sense out of what songs were chosen, what were ignored (nothing from "Pacific Overtures" or "Assassins", for example) or how they were sequenced.
Posted: 2/10/25 at 8:01pm
Photos: See Lea Salonga, Bernadette Peters, More in Rehearsals for Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends | Playbill
https://playbill.com/article/photos-see-lea-salonga-bernadette-peters-more-in-rehearsals-for-stephen-sondheims-old-friends
Posted: 2/10/25 at 8:59pm
PepperedShepherd said:
Early on, we get "Company", "The Little Things You Do Together" and "You Could Drive a Person Crazy". Understandable, so far. But then we veer into "Live Alone and Like It" and then to "Loving You". Huh? And just as I'm trying to wrap my head around that seque, we're suddenly back to Company with "Getting Married Today".
It is strange to group some together and some... not at all. Does it have anything to do with who is singing what? I would say Live Alone and Like It--unless they did a Dick Tracy sequence--kinda would seem to fit with those Company song choices, and, to me, having Everybody Ought to Have a Maid side by side (by side) with Gimmick also kinda makes sense (a comic song for the men then one for the women) but in general...
Updated On: 2/10/25 at 08:59 PM
Posted: 2/10/25 at 9:32pm
Can someone snap a pic of the merch at CTG? They changed the logo between the UK and US version so I assume new merch.
Posted: 2/10/25 at 9:39pm
Why were certain shows represented more than others? I can't swear to this, but I think I read somewhere that Cameron Mackintosh selected heavily from Sondheim shows he has produced, including his previous revues.
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